


Once a Year

by Anonymous



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Amusement Parks, Character Study, Domestic Fluff, Established Relationship, Eventual Fluff, Fluff with a Sad Ending, M/M, Miya Atsumu is a Little Shit, Morning Routines, Routine, Sakusa Kiyoomi-centric, Sort Of, Tags Are Hard, written out of spite
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-14
Updated: 2020-06-14
Packaged: 2021-03-04 00:35:06
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,898
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24724639
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/
Summary: Perhaps the gods of the shrine missed what he meant, because in the next year, he signed onto his current team. His course was thus altered to change his new needs. And everything was fine for him to handle until he realized.This was all before he knew that Miya Atsumu would completely alter his routine.Not even just once, but twice.((AKA a look at Sakusa's routine before and after Atsumu became a part of it))
Relationships: Miya Atsumu/Sakusa Kiyoomi
Comments: 33
Kudos: 97
Collections: Anonymous





	Once a Year

It was well known that Sakusa was a person of routine. But in his mind, a routine was not a schedule. It wasn’t something he had to get done every hour of the day, surely he wasn’t that studious. Rather, they were just things that he did every once in a while that held a sense of normalcy. Having routines calmed him, brought him peace in a world filled with chaos.

The first step in his daily routine was always to wake up, to the ring of his alarm clock. He would step out of his sheets, folding them smoothly before slipping on bathroom slippers and going about his bathroom routine. Brush his teeth (toothbrush was replaced every month), wash his face (clean towels every week), style his hair (new brush every other month). Sometimes he’d find himself staring at the grey eyes looking back at him through the mirror.

Get dressed for jogging, each day of the week had a specific pair of clothes for sports and daily work. A quick stretch prior to ensure his own safety. With that, he’d set off to a jog, making sure to grab his keys, a mask, and his phone before going off into the cold air.

One foot in front of the other, around the park and through the back route to return home.

Of course he recognized some things were out of his control, such as when the street lights changed color or what the weather was, but he took comfort in the things that he did know based on his everyday life.

Toe off his shoes at the entrance, lining them up with the step and entering, greeting his empty house. To be fair, he lived in a fairly standard area: one living room, one bathroom, one bedroom, one kitchen and so on and so forth. It wasn’t extravagant at the least, especially because he never found the effort to decorate the place. Many shelves in the living room were left empty as he didn’t have enough books or pictures to fill them. 

The walls also retained their white color as he decided to keep the pale walls from the last owners, unable to care less about their color.

Ignoring those thoughts, he headed off to the shower, disposing of his mask on the way. 

Sakusa spent his time in the bathroom, making sure to clean every spot on his skin. Careful, as he had always been.

And when he dried himself off and switched to his daily clothes, he’d scroll through his messages and phone, making sure he didn’t leave anything important unread. While he wasn’t an avid texter himself, he read all his messages. Most were from his teammates or family.

The rest of the day was spent doing what was on his agenda. Whatever needed tending to such as during school days, attending classes and practice. During weekends, the laundry and house chores alongside balancing classwork and more practice.

To Sakusa, there was no such thing as something he couldn’t complete on his agenda. Quite frankly, he mocked people who insisted their tasks were endless. 

However, that was the norm. Today was a special day of the year. 

Due to his parents' insistence, he would go to the shrine one per year.

He refused to do so during busy days such as New Years, due to his avoidance of crowds. But, he did go during occasional events or whenever he had time to catch an empty train. The ride there was short anyway.

That aside, he would visit the same shrine, the one that was two stops from his house and up a hill of steps into the gate. He would say his quick prayers as he threw a coin in and pulled the bell, once again wishing for a good year ahead of him.

Once night arrived, he would go through his nightly bathroom routine, nearly a reflection of his mornings however instead of styling his hair, he would floss his teeth. And once done, he would change into his sleep clothes, ending his daily routine and falling asleep to the lull of white noise in the background.

Perhaps the gods of the shrine missed what he meant, because in the next year, he signed onto his current team. His course was thus altered to change his new needs. And everything was fine for him to handle until he realized.

This was all before he knew that Miya Atsumu would completely alter his routine.

Not even just once, but twice.

⬖𝄋⬗

Something not everyone knew was that Sakusa often pondered how certain things came to be. Like was there a reason for every action.

In retrospect, he couldn’t have avoided this situation anyway. It was a collection of actions that all led up to him tearing down his walls and letting someone in. Who knows when that chain reaction began to happen? 

Maybe it began when they met in training camp on opposite sides. Maybe it was when they ended up again on the same team in the major leagues. Perhaps he was at fault for not shutting down the dumb nicknames. Or maybe it started when he somehow let Atsumu into his apartment just to watch games once. And that eventually led to the team sending the blonde to take care of him when he fell ill, seeing as no one else knew where he lived.

Which he guessed eventually led to him saying something dumb in his delierious mind, and somehow led to them being a thing.

Long story short, with a series of unfortunate (?) events, he’s been with Atsumu for a year and five months now, and three months ago, the other moved in with him.

“Omi-kunnn, turn off that god forsaken thing.”

“It’s the fucking alarm clock, not whatever the hell you just said.” Sakusa mumbled, flipping on his side and trying to turn it off, quickly pressing the button only to be pulled back under the covers seconds after. “The alarm already went off, let go.”

He got a grumble in reply, prompting him to turn back around, facing a mess of yellow hair and a scrunched up face. Rolling his eyes, Sakusa laid there, sighing again. “Come on, let go.”

“Thirty more minutessss.”

The sun was already peeking through the windows. Technically, he was on a routine, not a schedule, so the jog could wait, meaning he could technically spare about some time to stay in bed. Damn the fox for changing his routine though.

“Ten minutes that’s my final offer.” A satisfied hum in reply and arms that pulled him even closer to the other. 

A chaste kiss was pressed to his forehead. “M’love ya.”

It was mornings like this that brought a smile to Sakusa’s face, a soft smile that barely grazed his lips but still wrinkled his eyes. “Yeah,” he muttered, interrupted by his own yawn, knowing the other knew what he meant.

“Yer smiles in the morning are pretty.”

An eyebrow raise. “I don’t trust a thing your sleep riddled mind makes up.”

“Mmmmm, shut up and let me sleep.”

“You have like two more minutes, get up, Atsumu.” 

A single eye peered at him. “Ugh, such a stickler to that routine. Fine, help me up Omi-omi pleaseee.” Another eye roll before Sakusa grabbed Atsumu’s arm, yanking the other into a sitting position against the headboard. Atsumu seemed shaken with the rough treatment as his eyes flew open and a curse rolled off his tongue. 

“You said so?”

“Oi! Omi-kun please, we’re professional players, what if ya yanked my arm off.”

Sakusa flinched, his hand instinctively retracting towards his chest, holding it with his other hand by his heart. “Like I would ever do that.” A glance at the clock. “Come on, it's late, let’s get ready. Get changed, I’ll use the bathroom first.”

“M’kay, already changing~”

“At  _ least _ let me get out first, tch.” Without looking back, he aimed a pillow directly at the other’s face, landing it by the sound of an ‘oof’ behind him.

The sound of water filling up in his cup as he dipped his toothbrush in. Leaning in towards the mirror, check his skin. Going through the rest was normal, wash face, style hair, and check that task off his list. He peered up one more times, black eyes staring back at him, the light reflecting it in such a way it looked like the depths of water.

Another pair of eyes joined his. “Whatcha looking at?”

“What the--” Sakusa yelped, swatting the hand on his shoulder away. “Didn’t I say to--”

“C’mon, Omi-kun, I finished changing minutes ago, let myself in the bathroom since ya were taking so long.” Atsumu sang, reaching over to grab his own toothbrush and begin his own morning clean up. 

“Say something next time you sneak in,” Sakusa grumbled, leaving Atsumu behind to change into his own clothes and fold the bed, taking in how his closet had split into two sides now, each filled with vastly different colors.

Strange how easily they fell into this groove.

To prove his point, his body automatically led him to the kitchen after changing, deft fingers working to make morning coffee. Two mugs set on the counter, one with two sugars and one with nothing. Sometimes he forgot when he started drinking black coffee.

He took the mug in his hands, blowing it gently and taking tiny sips from the surface.

“M’done, ooh coffee?” Atsumu peered at the counter as the door closed behind him. “Yer the best, Omi-kun.”

“I know.” Sakusa replied, voice as flat as ever, watching with mild amusement as Atsumu somehow chugged the whole mug. How did he do that without burning his tongue off? It never ceased to be a mystery. 

Sakusa continued setting his mug down on the counter, knowing he probably wasn’t going to drink it all now, “Anyway, that was way too fast in the bathroom, did you actually--”

A nonchalant wave, “Yeah, yeah I just finish faster than ya, let’s just get going. Here I even got a mask for ya.” Atsumu handed over the exact one Sakusa was thinking about, earning another eyebrow raise but no questions. “Come on.” Atsumu reached out a hand, looking earnestly at the other until it was held.

“It's not even efficient to run holding hands.” 

“Shhh, talk less, run more.” Atsumu smirked, dragging the other behind him. “Plus yer not even trying to let go, Omi-kun. I’ll let ya free at the park I swear.”  
A grunt of recognition as they set off, keys jingling in Sakusa’s pocket and some pop music playing through the earbuds they shared between them. The wind whistled as they ran, sun slowly coming out from its hiding and illuminating the two, to which Atsumu laughed at, rounding the corner of the park.

Atsumu let go, sprinting ahead to claim a spot on the swings. 

By the time Sakusa got there, the other was already swinging high, yelling some volleyball nonsense as far as he could tell. A fond smile came onto his face, though no one despite Atsumu could tell due to his mask. It was alright, it’s not like that look was dedicated to anyone else. 

He let Atsumu release all his energy, switching between the swing to the rock climbing to simply running around as Sakusa sat down on a bench, scrolling through his feed before his fingers hovered over the calendar. “Oh goodness gracious,” he muttered, just as Atsumu trotted back to him like some type of dog, he mused. 

“What’s wrong, Omi-kun?” An innocent grin.

“It’s that time of year again isn’t it? Right before the season, when you pester me to go out with you to some place before we  _ get all sore from practice and have no time to spend together. _ ” He said the last part in a faux accent. 

Atsumu’s grin only grew. “First of all, I don’t sound like that. Second, yup, tickets booked already, we’re going the day after tomorrow. Third, admit it, ya love hanging out with me.”

“First, you do. Second, could’ve said something in advance. Third, never said anything that implied otherwise. Are you done here, we're heading home?”

“Awh so touching, Omi-kun. I would’ve thought ya really cared about me with talk like that. Are ya inviting me home too? Omi-kun, so bold.” Atsumu teased, holding his chest dramatically like his heart was falling out. It wasn’t.

Eye roll. “I’m leaving you, dumbass.”

He set off with a brisk pace, smiling as half-hearted complaints followed after him. In the end, he let Atsumu take the lead, lagging behind to a walk as soon as they turned the corner to their neighborhood. Atsumu took that chance to dash ahead to the door, before realizing, he didn’t even have the key.

“Missing something, Miya?”

“Why ask me that? Yer clearly the one missing me~”

He inserted the key in, not even bothering to look at Atsumu. “Mhmm, miss you too.” Sakusa deadpanned while opening up the door, gesturing for the other to enter first, which he did.

At first glance, anyone would know the apartment looked nothing like it did years prior. 

Pictures of their time together lined the walls, most of them taken during landmarks in their relationship. Or at least whatever Atsumu considered a landmark such as when they first held hands or something. Either way, most of them had Atsumu’s signature grin and Sakusa looking away from the camera, blushing.

Another addition Atsumu brought into his apartment were some posters of bands he liked or trophies from his own achievements. It was these little things that were added to the barren living room that no one else would notice but him. 

“Ya want the shower first?” Atsumu questioned, waking Sakusa from his daze. His pause allowed the other to continue, “Or ya want to shower together?”

“Yeah, no. Go ahead first, I need to finish an email.”

Atsumu nodded, leaving Sakusa on the couch to actually finish an email regarding some work details. Nothing serious to worry about. The only thing to worry about in his mind right now was the day after tomorrow. 

That was because once per year, they would go out to an amusement park date, despite his complaints, he couldn’t resist Atsumu’s pleas. Apparently it was a childhood experience that Atsumu wanted to keep through his years and drag Sakusa along with his antics. 

The first time they went together, Sakusa was skeptical, scowling the whole car ride there. Truth be told, he never got the experience of going on rides and never felt the need to try.

In addition to the crowds that were likely there only brought distaste to his mouth.

But, in reality, last year was surprisingly fun? In fact, Atsumu was friends with an employee there and had somehow worked out one of the least crowded days to go, alongside always staying by his side, making sure nothing came within his comfort zone. And even then, his first taste at a ride was exhilarating. The adrenaline that rushed to his head felt just like spiking a ball. In fact, it was so exciting he barely managed to ask Atsumu to ride it again, which got a chuckle in return.

By the end of the day, he was drained as hell, but still slipped the park pamphlet into a clear case and put it on the shelf as memory.

And it was that time of year again. 

“Omi-kun, for the last time, we’re going to an amusement park, not camping.” Atsumu sighed, glancing warily at all the bags lined up in the car. “There really is a saying called y’know packing light or somethin.”

Sakusa turned, glaring at him. “Shut up, we can leave them in the car.”

“M’kay.” Atsumu hummed, giving in and just going to the drivers side of the car. After all the car was actually his. Sakusa finally finished checking to make sure everything was in order before going to the passenger’s side of the car, leaning on his hand and eyes trailing to the view outside the car as they began to go.

Atsumu filled the ride with mindless chatter and radio music as Sakusa sat in silence. To anyone else, it may seem he wasn’t even listening, but Atsumu knew the other was catching every word. He knew Sakusa kept everything said in a little box in his head, for future use and Atsumu could tell by the little gestures. 

In fact, it was a ride like this that prompted Sakusa to buy him a coffee machine.

“...and then ‘samu replied like ‘what the fuck’ and to be fair it was basically three in the mornin, but it was a serious concern of mine okay, oh look there’s the park right up ahead!”

Sakusa looked up, eyeing the structures with a sense of unease.

“C’mon, ya had fun last year, don’t hide it.” Atsumu teased, pulling the grumpy man out of the car by the sleeve towards the entrance. Taking the lead he pulled out the tickets from his jeans and handed them over to a worker at the front entrance.

She scanned them before looking up in surprise, “Aren’t you two the players from--”

Atsumu smiled, lifting a finger to his lips in a silencing motion, “Keep it a secret between us, would ya?” The lady stood there in shock as the two entered, his antics earning him an elbow to the side by his partner. 

“You had to do that?” Sakusa muttered, “We get that you have fans everywhere, and get them to shut with one move. But still, you’re drawing attention to us again and--”

“M’kay, don’t be jealous, Omi-kun. I love ya so much. But like, let’s go ride that.” Atsumu chirped, completely ignoring the other and rushing into the practically nonexistent line, just as he had promised on that day. 

Crossing his arms, Sakusa simply let himself be pulled along for the rest of the day, from roller coasters to the spinning teacups to the ferris wheel at the end of the day. Through those hours, he became an expert at hiding his smile behind his mask and his excitement with a twinkle in his eyes.

“Get your ass off our bed and take a shower before sleeping,” Sakusa scolded as they arrived home. Atsumu only rolled around more, moaning about how he was too tired to get up. “I’ll drag you into the shower.”

“Please do, love ya.” 

Another eyeroll before Sakusa actually went over, carrying Atsumu over his shoulder into the bathroom and cleaning the both of them up for bed. Letting the water run, he focused on washing Atsumu’s hair, rubbing soothing circles at the base of the other’s head, earning a satisfying hum in reply. 

“You’re done, get out, brush your teeth and get changed.”

Then he focused his attention to himself, making sure to clean every spot that might’ve been dirtied by their trip today. He let his mind wander, thinking how years ago, he would have never dared to venture into an amusement park, but now he found himself enjoying it despite his limitations. All that Atsumu has done for him, taking him out of his shell, yet taking it step by step, never coming too close yet never going back on his word.

“Please, Atsumu, you can’t sleep with wet hair,” Sakusa sighed, getting tired himself. He changed, joining Atsumu on the bed as the latter scrolled through his phone. Sakusa carried the hair dryer from the bathroom, sitting on the edge of the bed to plug in the device, proceeding to run his hands through the blonde hair, watching as they caught onto his fingers as warm air pooled around them. 

Atsumu hummed in appreciation, nuzzling his head on Sakusa’s hand until his hair was dry. Sakusa returned to the bathroom to finish his own nightly routine, drying his own hair before, climbing into bed next to Atsumu. 

And the final step to his routine nowadays, he turned, pressing a chaste kiss onto the other’s lips. 

“Good night, Atsumu.” 

⬖𝄋⬗

Sakusa was also a human of completion. Once he had settled in a rhythm, it was impossible to break his concentration until he completed his task. In every aspect of his life, he believed in practicing something until he could have an overall success chance. A calculated probability rather than simply guessing.

Which explained how his day went. Shifting awake from his sleep, he shut his beeping alarm clock, glancing warily at the sun peeking through his blinds. Was he late? No, that wasn’t possible, he woke up every day to the sound of his alarm. But despite that, he laid there in bed a few minutes later without realizing it.

Shaking his head, he got up and into his bathroom shoes. He went through the motions, brushing his teeth and so on. Only he paused when he stared at the mirror. Blank eyes stared back at him, eyebags forming under his eyes. 

When did he start looking so tired?

Before his jog, he made sure to make morning coffee, taking black coffee for himself, slowly downing the drink and leaving the lingering bitterness on his tongue. He left the mug on the counter, with two sugars. 

And off he went, lingering a little longer at the park than necessary.

Coming back, his house was as bare as he remembered it being years ago. Still plain white walls, still the same decoration. He pursed his lips, just the overturned picture frames that stared back at him, practically mocking him.

Going to the shower, he didn’t bother warming it up, stepping in immediately to feel the chill go through his spine. Breath in, breathe out. Count the seconds.

Glancing at the calendar, a black circle outlined the date. 

“Ah, I suppose it’s that time of year again,”Sakusa thought as he got dressed again, this time in formal wear and a mask that hopefully took away from his tired frown. Either way, he found his way on a train, riding one station away to first, a flower shop. Slipping a quick order in, he left with a bouquet of flowers.

Walking to his destination, he took his time, glancing at the trees and how they had started to change colors. Since when did he become so sentimental? Since when did he notice the world around him like this?

Today was the day that once a year, he would visit the gravestone.

Lay those flowers, down and talk to stone, hoping someone there would hear him. Soft smile on his face, thinking about everything that led up to this day.

“Hey, come home, I made coffee for you.”

As the sun set, he got up, brushing off his suit and leaving his fingers on the stone’s cold surface for a little longer before bowing, tears threatening to spill at yet another goodbye, despite knowing he would be back next year.

Instead of riding home, he decided to walk home, gazing at the stars fondly. 

It was already late when Sakusa arrived at their home. The clock read near midnight, so he silently went through his nightly routine in a daze, then straight to bed. Turning to his side, sad smiling grazing his lips, he finished his routine he committed to for years.

“Good night, Atsumu.”

⬖𝄋⬗

Fin. 

**Author's Note:**

> Author does not know what fluff is? Author doesn't know what fluff ratio is?? I’m pretty sure I still dislike this writing format, its too blunt but hey, I'll post it anyway...Written in spite that I break my wrists writing this and Sakusa just *bends*??
> 
> Still on the "fluff with a sad ending" agenda...which is going bad I'm tired already...*stares at ideas* Also comment/suggestions/revisions welcome, except if anyone else wants to fight be abt tagging, kindly go away, thanks.


End file.
